Barrier and barrier post therefor

ABSTRACT

A barrier including a series of barrier posts arranged relative to one another to control the movement of people, animals and motor vehicles. The barrier herein disclosed has particular application for use at a golf course. A first end of a containment belt is attached to a spring that is located within a spring housing carried by a first barrier post. The opposite end of the containment belt has a tab to be releasably attached to a hook which projects from an adjacent barrier post so that the containment belt extends between the first and adjacent barrier posts. In one embodiment, the spring housing is located inside the first barrier post. In another embodiment, the spring housing is detachably connected to the barrier post.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a barrier post and to a containment belt having one end thereof attached to a spring located within a spring housing that is carried by the barrier post and an opposite end to be releasably attached to an adjacent barrier post. A series of such barrier posts are arranged to create a barrier for controlling the movement of people, animals and motor vehicles at, for example, a golf course.

2. Background Art

There is a continuous need for a portable, easy-to-use barrier by which to control the movement of people, animals and vehicles. In some cases, access to a restricted area is to be denied. In other cases, movement is intended to be limited to and directed along a particular pre-determined path. Such a barrier is necessary at both indoor and out-of-door venues, such as museums, airports, gardens and events.

By way of particular example, the operators of a golf course often wish to prevent players, gallery members, and golf carts from straying over and possibly damaging certain off-limits areas of the course. The ability of the operators to have access to adequate crowd control barrier means, especially during tournaments where large numbers of individuals are in attendance, can directly affect the condition of the golf course as well as the enjoyment of players and spectators alike.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In general terms, a barrier is disclosed having a series of barrier posts that are arranged relative to one another to control the movement of people, animals and motor vehicles at both indoor and out-of-door venues such as, for example, a golf course. Each barrier post includes a durable body having a mounting stake projecting from the bottom thereof to be pushed downwardly through grass or a dirt roadway to hold the post in place above the ground. One end of containment belt is connected to a (e.g., clock) spring within a spring housing. According to a first preferred embodiment, the spring housing is located inside the body of the barrier post. According to an alternate preferred embodiment, the spring housing is detachably connected to the outside of the body of the barrier post by means of a sliding member on the spring housing sliding into removable engagement with a catch on the post body.

A locking tab is located at the opposite end of the containment belt. A locking hook projects from the body of each barrier post. The containment belt is pulled outwardly from the spring housing of a first barrier post until the locking hook at the opposite end of the belt is moved into releasable attachment with the locking hook of an adjacent barrier post. Accordingly, the spring will hold the containment belt taut between the first and adjacent barrier posts. In this same regard, respective containment belts from the series of barrier posts can be stretched end-to-end to complete the barrier having a variable length depending upon the number of barrier posts being used.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a barrier according to a first preferred embodiment of this invention including a series of barrier posts having respective containment belts that extend between adjacent ones of the posts;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing a spring housing located within a cavity formed inside one of the barrier posts of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of one of the series of barrier posts shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the barrier post looking downwardly along liens 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the barrier post of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a barrier post according to an alternate preferred embodiment of this invention having a containment belt for use in creating a barrier;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the barrier post of FIG. 6:

FIG. 8 illustrates the detachable connection of a spring housing to the barrier post of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 is a top view of the barrier post looking downwardly along lines 9-9 of FIG. 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A portable barrier 70 according to a first preferred embodiment of this invention is disclosed while referring concurrently to FIGS. 1-5 of the drawings. The barrier 70 includes a series of identical barrier posts 1 which are used in combination with one another (best shown in FIG. 1) to control the movement of people, animals and/or motorized vehicles. By way of example only, and as will be described in greater detail hereinafter, the barrier 70 of FIG. 1 may be used out of doors at a golf course to restrict the movement of golf carts and those walking the course to a pre-determined area. Thus, it is preferable that barrier post 1 be manufactured from a durable and weather-resistance material.

To this end, each of the barrier posts 1 has a mounting stake 3 projecting from the bottom thereof. In the example of the golf course described above, the stakes 3 are pushed downwardly through grass or a dirt roadway to enable the barrier posts 1 to be held in place erect and above ground. In this same regard, the stakes 3 can be pulled upwardly from the grass or roadway when the portable barrier 70 is to be removed from or repositioned along the course as is needed.

Although the barrier posts 1 are shown in FIG. 1 with stakes 3 projecting downwardly therefrom, such stakes can be replaced by conventional stands (not shown) of the kind adapted to sit upon the ground. In this case, the barrier posts 1 of the barrier 70 can be used indoors such as at an airport, museum or other building, where it is desirable to control the movement of people.

As is best shown in FIG. 2, each barrier post 1 includes a body 5 and a cap 7. A cavity 9 is formed through the top of the body 5. The cap 7 is detachably connected to the body 5 of the barrier post 1 so as to cover the cavity 9. A set of conventional threaded fasteners 10 are shown extending through the cap 7 for receipt within correspondingly threaded mounting holes 12 formed in the body 5, whereby to attach the cap 7 over top the body 5 and thereby surround the cavity 9.

The cavity 9 at the top of the body 5 of barrier post 1 is sized to receive therewithin a spring housing 14. A conventional (e.g., ¼ inch clock) spring 15 is wound up and held in place inside clock housing 14. Because the spring 15 is well known, the details thereof will not be provided. One end of a containment belt 16 is wrapped around and attached to the spring 15 within housing 14 by way of a slot 18 through the body 5 of barrier post 1 (best shown in FIGS. 2 and 5) and an axially-aligned slot 20 through the spring housing 14.

Located at the opposite end of the containment belt 16 is locking tab 22. The locking tab 22 is manually accessible outside the body 5 of barrier post 1. As an important feature of this embodiment, a locking hook 24 (best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) is affixed to one side of the body 5 of barrier post 1. The locking hook 24 projects outwardly from the body 5 below the cap 7 thereof. As is also best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the containment belt 16 extends outwardly from the slot 18 at one side of the body 5, and the locking hook 24 projects outwardly from an opposite side of the body.

Referring specifically to FIGS. 1 and 2, the containment belt 16 is shown stretched between a pair of adjacent barrier posts 1 to establish a section of the barrier 70. In particular, the containment belt 16 is pulled out of its spring housing 14 and away from one of the harrier posts 1 to be coupled to an adjacent post. Because the containment belt 16 is attached at one end thereof to the spring 15 wound up inside the spring housing 14, a retracting force is exerted by the spring 15 upon the belt 16. Thus, an opposing pulling force must be applied to the opposite end of the belt 16 at which the locking tab 22 is located so as to overcome the retracting force generated by the spring 15.

Accordingly, the containment belt 16 is pulled through the slot 18 in the body 5 of a first barrier post 1 so that the locking tab 22 of belt 16 can be releasably attached to the locking hook 24 of the adjacent post. To this end, the locking tab 22 may include an opening 26 (of FIG. 2) through which to receive the locking hook 24.

A well-known snap-in clip 28 is located between the first and opposite ends of the containment belt 16. Snap-in ends of the clip 28 are adapted to be pulled apart should it become necessary to create a break in the belt 16. The clip 28 also provides a stop to limit the retraction of the containment belt 16 inwardly of the body 5 via slot 18.

By virtue of the retracting force exerted by the spring 15 inside the spring housing 14 and the energy stored when the containment belt 16 is pulled and the spring is stressed, the containment belt 16 will remain taut after it has been pulled outwardly and away from the first barrier post 1 and coupled to an adjacent post at the locking hook 24 which projects from the body 5 thereof towards the first post 1.

When the locking tab 22 of the containment belt 16 of the first barrier post 1 is detached from the locking hook 24 of the adjacent barrier post, the energy stored by the spring 15 under stress will cause the belt to be automatically retracted inwardly of the spring body 14 via the slot 18 formed in the body 5 of the first barrier post. It may thusly be appreciated that respective ones of the containment belts 16 from the series of barrier posts 1 can be pulled and stretched end-to-end one another as just explained and as shown in FIG. 1 to complete the barrier 70 having any length as is needed depending upon the number of barrier posts being used.

A portable barrier according to an alternate preferred embodiment of this invention is now disclosed while referring to FIGS. 6-9 of the drawings. Although the portable barrier of FIGS. 6-9 may include a series of barrier posts like those shown in FIG. 1, only a single post 30 is illustrated for convenience. Like the barrier post 1 of FIGS. 1-5, the barrier post 30 has a durable and weather-resistant body 32 with a mounting stake 34 projecting from the bottom thereof to be pushed downwardly through grass, a dirt roadway, or the like, for employment at a golf course or other outdoors venue.

A spring housing 36 within which a conventional (e.g., clock) spring 38 is wound (best shown in FIG. 7) is connected to and carried by the body 32 of the barrier post 30. While the spring housing 14 shown in FIGS. 1-5 is located within a cavity formed inside the body 5 of the barrier post 1, the spring housing 36 is connected to the barrier post 30 outside the body 32. In this case, and as will soon be explained, the spring housing 36 is detachably connected to one side of the body 32 of post 30.

One end of a containment belt 40 is wrapped around and attached to the spring 38 within the spring housing 36 by way of a slot 42 (of FIG. 6) formed in the housing. Located at the opposite end of the containment belt 40 is a locking tab 46. The locking tab 46 is manually accessible outside the spring housing 36.

As an important feature of this embodiment, a locking hook 48 (best shown in FIGS. 7 and 9) is affixed to the body 32 of barrier post 30. The locking hook 48 projects outwardly from a side of the body 32 which lies opposite the side to which the spring housing is detachably connected.

Like the containment belt 16 of FIGS. 1-5, the containment belt 40 of FIGS. 6-9 can be pulled from a first barrier post and stretched between a pair of adjacent barrier posts (only one of which 30 being illustrated). That is, the containment belt 40 is pulled out of its spring housing 36 and away from the first barrier post 30 to be coupled to an adjacent post (not shown). Because the containment belt 40 is attached to the spring 38 that is wound up inside the spring housing 36, a pulling force must be applied to the containment belt 40 to overcome an opposite retracting force exerted by the spring 38 against the belt 40.

The containment belt 40 is pulled outwardly through the slot 42 formed in the spring housing 36 at one side of the body 32 of the first barrier post 30. The locking tab 46 of belt 40 is then releasably attached to the locking hook 48 which projects towards the belt 40 from the opposite side of the body of the adjacent barrier post in order to establish a barrier between the first and adjacent barrier posts. The locking tab 46 may include an opening 50 (of FIG. 6) through which to receive the locking hook 48.

Because of the retracting force generated by the spring 38 which is wound up inside the spring housing 36, the containment belt 40 will remain taut after it has been pulled outwardly from its housing 36 and away from the first barrier post 30 and coupled to the locking hook 48 of the adjacent barrier post. In this same regard, when the locking hook 46 of the containment belt 40 of the first barrier post 30 is detached from the locking hook 48 of the adjacent barrier post, the force generated by the spring 38 will cause the belt 40 to be automatically retracted inwardly of the spring housing 36 via the slot 42 formed therein.

As explained earlier, the spring housing 36 is detachably connected to the outside of the body 32 of the barrier post 30. By virtue of the foregoing, the spring housing 36 can be separated from the body 32 to facilitate an easy transport and a compact storage, especially when a large number of barrier posts are employed to create a barrier. More particularly, a sliding member 54 is located at the exterior of the spring housing (best shown in FIG. 8). A relatively wide stop 56 is formed at one end of the sliding member 54. A corresponding generally U-shaped catch 58 is affixed to the side of the body 32 of the barrier post 30 which lies opposite the side from which the locking hook 48 projects. The sliding member 54 is pushed through and captured by the catch 58, whereby the spring housing 36 is removably coupled to the barrier post 30. The stop 56 prevents the sliding member 54 from inadvertently sliding completely through and out of receipt by the catch 58. 

1. A barrier to restrict the movement therepast of people, animals and motorized vehicles, said barrier comprising a containment belt having first and opposite ends and at least first and second barrier posts, each of said first and second barrier posts having a body, the first end of said containment belt extending inwardly of the body of said first barrier post and the opposite end of said containment belt extending outwardly of the body of said first barrier post and having a first attachment element, the body of each of said first and second barrier posts including a second attachment clement, such that the first attachment element at the opposite end of said containment belt is releasably attached to the second attachment element at the body of said second barrier post, whereby the containment belt runs between the bodies of said first and second barrier posts to establish said barrier therebetween.
 2. The barrier recited in claim 1, wherein each of said first and second barrier posts also has a mounting stake projecting downwardly from the body thereof to penetrate the ground and hold said body upright above the ground.
 3. The barrier recited in claim 1, wherein each of said first and second barrier posts also has a spring located inside the body thereof, the first end of said containment belt connected to said spring inside the body of said first barrier post, such that said spring exerts a retracting force against said containment belt to urge said containment belt to move inwardly of the body of said first barrier post.
 4. The barrier recited in claim 3, wherein the spring of each one of said first and second barrier posts is surrounded by a spring housing located inside a respective one of the bodies of said barrier posts.
 5. The barrier recited in claim 4, wherein the body of each one of said first and second barrier posts has a cavity for receipt therewithin of said spring housing, whereby each spring housing and each spring surrounded by said spring housing is located inside a respective one of the bodies of said barrier posts.
 6. The barrier recited in claim 4, wherein the bodies of said first and second barrier posts and each of the spring housings located inside said bodies has a slot formed therein, the first end of said containment belt extending outwardly from the body of said first barrier post by way of the slot formed in the spring housing and the slot formed in the body of said first barrier post.
 7. The barrier recited in claim 4, wherein each of said first and second barrier posts also has an end cap attached to the body thereof so as to lie over top and cover the spring housing located inside said body.
 8. The barrier recited in claim 7, wherein the end caps attached to the respective bodies of said first and second barrier posts are detachable from said bodies to permit access to the spring housings located inside said bodies.
 9. The barrier recited in claim 1, wherein the first attachment element at the opposite end of said containment belt is a locking tab having an opening therethrough, and the second attachment element at the body of said Second barrier post is a locking hook to be captured by and releasably attached to said locking tab at the opening therethrough.
 10. A barrier to restrict the movement therepast of people, animals and motorized vehicles, said barrier comprising at least first and second barrier posts and a containment belt having first and opposite ends, each of said first and second barrier posts having a body, the first end of said containment belt being coupled to said first barrier post at a location outside the body of said first barrier post, and the opposite end of said containment belt having a first attachment element, the body of each of said first and second barrier posts including a second attachment element, such that the first attachment element at the opposite end of said containment belt is releasably attached to the second attachment element at the body of said second barrier post, whereby said containment belt extends between the bodies of said first and second barrier posts to establish said barrier therebetween.
 11. The barrier recited in claim 10, wherein each of said first and second barrier posts also has a mounting stake projecting downwardly from the body thereof to penetrate the ground and hold said body upright above the ground.
 12. The barrier recited in claim 10, further comprising a spring housing and a spring located within and surrounded by said spring housing, the first end of said containment belt attached to said spring within said spring housing, and said spring housing connected to said first barrier post at the location outside the body of said first barrier post.
 13. The barrier recited in claim 12, wherein said spring housing is detachably connected to the body of said first barrier post at the location outside said body.
 14. The barrier recited in claim 13, further comprising a slide attached to said spring housing and a catch attached to the body of said first barrier post at the location outside said body, said slide moving into slidable and removable engagement with said catch, whereby said spring housing is detachably connected to the body of said first barrier post.
 15. The barrier recited in claim 10, wherein the first attachment element at the opposite end of said containment belt is a locking tab having an opening therethrough, and the second attachment element at the body of said second barrier post is a locking hook to be captured by and releasably attached to said locking tab at the opening therethrough. 